Tag: film

My Favourite Christmas Movies

I absolutely love Christmas movies, with their hopeful stories and cheesy outcomes. One of my favourite aspects of the festive season is sitting down, cosy and warm under a throw, eyes glued to a seasonal movie.

Whether it is a romantic comedy or a seasonal drama, anything festive is usually worth a watch. Some films are iconic though and stand the test of time. Here are my favourite all-time Christmas movies.

Love Actually

There is something sweet and charming about this lovely film by Richard Curtis. With multiple storylines overlapping, this cute movie never fails to make me feel gooey. With Emma Thompson, Kiera Knightley, Alan Rickman, Hugh Grant and many others, the film is fun, entertaining and has already lasted 19 years, so definitely has become a Christmas tradition.

Funny moments with Rowan Atkinson as a very slow gift wrapper are balanced with the sweeter highlights such as when Colin Firth marches through Italian streets in search of his true love.

Home Alone 2

Home Alone 2 is better than the first film, in my opinion. I could watch it every year and still spot new things that I’d never noticed previously. I remember visiting New York and taking a tour of Central Park where the bird lady had her scenes as well as standing outside the famous Plaza Hotel.

Macauley Culkin was memorable as a child star who lit up the screen with his performance as a kid who was not going to be beaten by some pathetic burglars.

The Snowman

This animated movie is just 26 minutes long and has no speaking in it but has a charming story which has been entertaining families for 40 years. It is synonymous with the beautiful soundtrack and hugely successful song, ‘We’re walking in the air’ which was sang by Aled Jones.

This animated movie is just 26 minutes long and has no speaking in it but has a charming story which has been entertaining families for 40 years. It is synonymous with the beautiful soundtrack and hugely successful song, ‘We’re walking in the air’ which was sang by Aled Jones.

Last Christmas

Emma Thompson and Bryony Kimmings wrote this 2019 movie which began life as an idea based on George Michael’s famous song. He sang, ‘Last Christmas, you gave me your heart’ and that is the basis for this heart-warming narrative starring Emilia Clarke (Game of Throne) and Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians).

I am particularly proud of this one as the screenwriter is from my home town and went to my school. She held a special viewing for family and friends which my mum attended.

The Holiday

Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz swapped lives in this beautiful comedy which came out in 2006. Kate swapped a quaint English cottage for a lush LA mansion. Jude Law played Kate’s brother and Jack Black charmed Kate’s character.

My favourite element of this is the serene snowy British village that is featured, although I have no idea where it is actually meant to be. In my part of England we hardly ever get to see snow these days because of global warming but I would love to live somewhere idyllic like that.

What Do You Think?

Please drop a comment to say what you think about these films or share your own preferred Christmas gems. If you enjoyed this article, perhaps also consider following my blog for similar future content. Time to turn on the television and pour yourself a Baileys.

For a gritty TV series instead, check out my House of the Dragon article.

Whitney Houston – My Fave!

Whitney famously sang at the Superbowl.

When I was young, my mum used to play cassette tapes of Whitney Houston whenever we drove anywhere. I remember hearing ‘So Emotional’ and ‘Didn’t we almost have it all’ so many times and pressing rewind a lot.

In 1992, I saw her sing, ‘I will always love you’ on the Des O’Connor Tonight Show and I remember thinking ‘WOW!’ This solidified my becoming a massive Whitney Houston fan. I joined her fanclub and watched her movies. I absolutely loved her.

Why was she special?

In 1999 I was lucky enough to go to the NEC in Birmingham and witness Whitney singing when she was at the top of her career. Her voice was superb. I remember thousands of people stood in silence listening to her rendition of ‘I will always live you’ and you could feel the love in the room. Her notes felt flawless.

As well as starring in films like ‘The Bodyguard’, ‘Cinderella’ and ‘The Preacher’s Wife’, she also produced movies such as ‘The Princess Diaries’. She always worked incredibly hard and did plenty of charity work too.

Seeing her again perform in 2010 at the NEC and again at the O2, she had lost some of her sparkle but her talent was still striking. Her sad death in 2012 made my cry as I realised how sorrowful her life became over time.

New Whitney Movie

Now I an excited that a brilliant movie about her life is coming to cinemas next week. Starring Naomi Ackie and Stanley Tucci (as Clive Davis), this film has an excellent trailer which highlights some memorable concerts, including her singing the US national anthem at the 1991 Superbowl.

Check out the trailer for ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ which is made by the brilliant creators of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and comes out on Friday 23rd December.

Matilda Movie Review

When I was a child I remember hearing my infant teacher read the BFG to our class. She used different voices and was totally enthralling. Every year I heard another of Dahl’s stories and I began to read them myself. Soon I became a massive Roald Dahl fan. It is therefore no surprise that the new Matilda Movie has recently captured my imagination.

About ten years ago I went to see the Tim Minchin musical version of Matilda and it blew me away. So I had very high expectations when they announced that Netflix was making a film production of that very musical.

My Thoughts On Matilda

I remember Matilda being released as a book in 1988 and instantly loved it. In my job I regularly read this book and other wonderful stories aloud to a class and they always soak up the witty remarks and hilarious plots.

Emma Thompson as the Trunchbull has gone down really well. She has created a character who is terrifying, awkward and very amusing. Seeing her stomping around whilst singing clever and funny lyrics, dressed as a tall, staunch hammer thrower, makes this film perfect in my eyes.

Newbie child actor, Alisha Weir, is well cast as the lead role of Matilda and fits in well with an already stellar group of actors, including the kind and tuneful teacher, Miss Honey (Lashana Lynch). In keeping with the book, Matilda strikes up a friendship with her local librarian, who occupies a mobile library van in the film version.

Tiktok has gone crazy for one of the dance routines where the kids rampage down the corridors of their school, Crunchem Hall. As a musical, it is great, with a combination of sentimental, energetic and angry songs. Emma sings triumphantly in character and they all perform the lyrics live rather than miming to a prerecorded soundtrack.

In A Nutshell

Without giving too much away, the Matilda movie generally keeps to the original plot, with some additions to make it visually more stunning. The tiny details that Roald used are all there to be spotted and it even references several of his other stories at one point. Look out for a giraffe, a gypsy caravan (no doubt from Danny the Champion of the World) and a sweet nod to the BFG.

This musical is packed with fun, vibrant characters and incredible songs. I totally recommend checking it out at a cinema as it is just brilliant! Please follow my blog for similar future posts about books, films and the environment.